ID :
19814
Wed, 09/17/2008 - 09:12
Auther :
Shortlink :
http://m.oananews.org//node/19814
The shortlink copeid
Education ministry to ease rules for foreign tertiary institutions
SEOUL, Sept. 16 (Yonhap) -- The education ministry unveiled a set of deregulation plans to boost foreign investment in Korea's universities on Tuesday, allowing foreign schools to apply country-of-origin accounting rules.
The liberalization project is part of President Lee Myung-bak's market-oriented
educational reform to break away from the country's decades-old
government-controlled system and clear the way for more participation by foreign
schools here.
The Ministry of Education, Science and Technology said foreign universities will
be allowed to use the same accounting rules as their parent schools and send
money abroad on condition that they present financial statements at the end of
their fiscal year. The current law binds them to the ministry's accounting
guidelines and bans remittances.
"It can restrict the movement of personnel and physical resources for
foreign schools if they are subject to a single accounting standard set by the
education minister," the ministry said in a statement.
Critics, however, say the effects of the deregulation may fall short of
expectations. There is currently only one foreign tertiary institution set up in
Korea, an MBA program from Finland located in Gwangyang, South Jeolla Province.
The school is widely viewed, however, as simply a degree-awarding program rather
than a serious academic institution.
While Seoul hopes to attract more international schools to open branches here
with the eased rules, Lee Sang-beom, a ministry official heading the project,
admits, "They seem to think it's not necessary because so many Korean
students are coming to them."
An estimated 217,960 Koreans are enrolled in tertiary institutions abroad,
compared to only 49,270 foreigners studying in Korean colleges.
While Korea has established hubs with fewer visa and tax barriers to attract
foreign investors, including the Incheon Economic Free Zone in the western port
city and the Jeju Free International City on the southern resort island, the
country has yet to attract a foreign tertiary institution.
The new plan will also allow full-time professors in Korean universities to hold
concurrent positions in overseas institutions if approved by their university
heads, as well as permitting students from three-year colleges to take courses
abroad. The current rules limit such opportunities only to students enrolled in
four-year universities.
To boost teacher morale, the ministry said it will abolish the "full-time
lecturer" title and simplify the ranks of professorship to three levels:
professor, associate professor and assistant professor.
hkim@yna.co.kr
(END)
The liberalization project is part of President Lee Myung-bak's market-oriented
educational reform to break away from the country's decades-old
government-controlled system and clear the way for more participation by foreign
schools here.
The Ministry of Education, Science and Technology said foreign universities will
be allowed to use the same accounting rules as their parent schools and send
money abroad on condition that they present financial statements at the end of
their fiscal year. The current law binds them to the ministry's accounting
guidelines and bans remittances.
"It can restrict the movement of personnel and physical resources for
foreign schools if they are subject to a single accounting standard set by the
education minister," the ministry said in a statement.
Critics, however, say the effects of the deregulation may fall short of
expectations. There is currently only one foreign tertiary institution set up in
Korea, an MBA program from Finland located in Gwangyang, South Jeolla Province.
The school is widely viewed, however, as simply a degree-awarding program rather
than a serious academic institution.
While Seoul hopes to attract more international schools to open branches here
with the eased rules, Lee Sang-beom, a ministry official heading the project,
admits, "They seem to think it's not necessary because so many Korean
students are coming to them."
An estimated 217,960 Koreans are enrolled in tertiary institutions abroad,
compared to only 49,270 foreigners studying in Korean colleges.
While Korea has established hubs with fewer visa and tax barriers to attract
foreign investors, including the Incheon Economic Free Zone in the western port
city and the Jeju Free International City on the southern resort island, the
country has yet to attract a foreign tertiary institution.
The new plan will also allow full-time professors in Korean universities to hold
concurrent positions in overseas institutions if approved by their university
heads, as well as permitting students from three-year colleges to take courses
abroad. The current rules limit such opportunities only to students enrolled in
four-year universities.
To boost teacher morale, the ministry said it will abolish the "full-time
lecturer" title and simplify the ranks of professorship to three levels:
professor, associate professor and assistant professor.
hkim@yna.co.kr
(END)
